Winnipeg, MB – The City of Winnipeg has developed its first analysis of the potential economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on Winnipeg. The analysis is publicly available through the Decision Making Information System (DMIS) and is being presented at the meeting of the Standing Policy Committee on Finance (SPC-Finance) on April 27, 2020.
“A Crisis Cash Flow Management Plan has been developed in an effort to navigate the City’s finances through the economic storm created by COVID-19,” said Councillor Scott Gillingham, Chairperson of the Standing Policy Committee on Finance. “The Plan is informed by economic information, analysis and projections and may need to be adjusted in the future as the financial impact of the pandemic is constantly evolving.”
Anticipating a range of plausible outcomes for the course of the pandemic, the City used basic economic markers to estimate three levels of impact to the economy and the resulting implications on unemployment and gross domestic product (GDP). The calculations in the analysis do not account for new government policies or employment supports.
“The economic landscape is constantly changing during the pandemic and the data in the analysis may change in the coming weeks and months,” said Tyler Markowsky, City Economist. “In our analysis, we found that the financial impact of COVID-19 on Winnipeg is real and likely quite substantial. Once economic data is released from Statistics Canada and other official outlets, we can begin to assess the various impacts COVID-19 has had on Winnipeg’s economy in greater detail.”
With the recent passage of the 2020-23 multi-year balanced budget, the City’s financial future is better planned than most jurisdictions. Additionally, in the short term, the Financial Stabilization Reserve is giving the Public Service the financial capacity to deliver all primary City services while strategies are developed to manage reduced revenues, which are estimated at $12 million per month.
In the short term, recommendations for the role of municipal governments in economic recovery include sustaining employment, and working in partnership with federal and provincial governments to coordinate the gradual re-opening of closed sectors in the local economy. In the longer term, capital investment programs are an important part of economic recovery and all levels of government have a role to play with those investments.
“The Crisis Cash Flow Management Plan maintains the City’s recently adopted 2020 capital program which is set to invest $369 million in important capital projects,” said Councillor Gillingham. “This investment will assist to stimulate the struggling local economy and is estimated to provide over 2,300 jobs. To make significant cuts to the 2020 capital budget would further exacerbate the challenges our local economy is currently facing.”